Symantec is systematic, automatic

Software vendor Symantec is using product activation features to ensure that IT users keep their security up to date. The latest version of its Norton AntiVirus software will check for updates whenever the user is online and download them without checking with the user first.

Software vendor Symantec is using product activation features to ensure that IT users keep their security up to date. The latest version of its Norton AntiVirus software will check for updates whenever the user is online and download them without checking with the user first.

Along with a range of features designed to protect against blended security threats, Norton AntiVirus 2004 includes Symantec’s LiveUpdate feature. “To ensure Norton AntiVirus 2004 user’s protection stays updated against new online threats, Symantec’s LiveUpdate will check for new antivirus updates whenever the user is online,” the company said. “LiveUpdate will then automatically and unobtrusively download updates in the background to minimise disruptions, thus allowing users to achieve the continued peace of mind that comes with knowing their antivirus product is working at its best.”

The problems caused by users’ failure to update security protection have been in the spotlight for the past two weeks, with the spread of the Blaster worm being ascribed to the failure of many users to update their systems in the wake of a widely reported flaw in Microsoft software. Microsoft issued warnings about the flaw and provided a patch for it in July, but many users had failed to apply it a month later.

On the other hand, consumer groups often object to such automatic updates because of the potential for abuse during remote access of computers.